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WALKING TO EMMAUS AND HOPE RENEWED (LUKE 24:13-35)

REFLECTION

“Walking to Emmaus and Hope renewed” is the theme for our reflection. Hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen. Renewal is an instance of resuming something after an interruption. On the day Jesus was resurrected, two of His followers were on the road to Emmaus. Jesus joined them but they could not recognise Him.

It became obvious that Jesus’ absence from the tomb was not understood as resurrection to some of His followers. They thought the body was missing, Cleopas explained to Jesus, “…But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” (Luke 24:21-23) In other words, some of the people who followed Jesus had lost hope because they believed that He was a prophet sent by God and endowed with supernatural powers to redeem Israel from the Roman government thereby granting them independence. They lost hope when Jesus was persecuted and killed by the leaders of Israel.

Eventually, their hope will be renewed with the understanding that Jesus was not one of God’s prophets but the son of God whom the prophets of old had spoken about. He was to redeem not just Israel but the whole of humanity from sin and Satan’s dominion into the Kingdom of God through faith. It was for this reason, Jesus said to them “Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?”(Luke 24:26). Dear friend in the Lord, the resurrection of Jesus has renewed our hope for salvation and eternal live in Him. Paul further explained the renewal of hope through Jesus’ resurrection when he wrote that “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:17-21). Surely, in Christ, we live!

Again, we must strongly yearn for the Lord to stay with us because through His presence in our lives, our spiritual sight is restored and our faith and hope is revived to witness. Luke tells us that “As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight” (Luke 24:28-31). How could they have had their eyes opened, faith revived and hope renewed if they had not invited Jesus to stay with them? Beloved in the Lord, having a relationship with Jesus and inviting Him to stay with us keeps our spiritual eyes open because we come to know the truth about our salvation through the resurrected Christ. Jesus assures us that, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)

Consequently, our faith is revived and we are compelled to witness to others about the resurrected Christ and His glory in our lives. Again, Peter admonishes us that Jesus is worth inviting when he wrote to the Jews that “He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him, you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.” (1 Peter 1:20-21). When the two believers had experienced the revelation and glory of the Lord, their hopes were renewed and they “…got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread. (Luke 24:33-35). Beloved in the Lord, when Jesus stays with us and opens our eyes, we are compelled to let others know about our experience with Him and this is known as witnessing.

Have you experienced Jesus and have you witnessed to others about Him? This our main duty as believers, to tell the world about our experience with the Resurrected Christ, for we were once blind and lost but now Jesus has restored our sight and has found us worthy of His salvation. When the disciple experienced the resurrected Christ, their faith was revived and hope renewed, hence Jesus said to them “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20) Again when the Psalmist experienced the presence of the Lord in His life, He wrote, “I will declare your name to my people; in the assembly, I will praise you.” (Psalms 22:22) It is now our turn to witness to the world about Jesus and what He has done for us since the time He saved us and has become part of our lives. Cleopas and his friend, immediately after encountering Jesus and having their eyes opened travelled back from Emmaus to Jerusalem which is about seven miles or eleven and a half kilometres to tell others about their renewed home and new encounter with the resurrected Christ. How far are you willing to go to witnesses and how enthusiastic are you about your faith and encounter with Jesus? Many believers share their experience of new movies, secular music and other information of mutual interest with friends and family but how often do we share our encounter with Jesus with others? If we desire Jesus to stay with us then we must be ready to listen to Him, have our eyes opened and become witnesses of His presence in our lives.

PRAYER

Our Lord and Master Jesus, we are eternally grateful to you for saving us and renewing our hope for the eternal life through Your resurrection power. Amen